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Superman Post-Crisis #36
Superman: End of the Century
On the eve of the new millennium, someone is committing arson in Metropolis - and the target of their crimes is none other than Lex Luthor! And when the immortal Contessa del Portenza arrives, demanding custody of Lena, Luthor's infant daughter, the criminal mastermind realises that this is a threat he must take seriously...But what Luthor doesn't know is that the Contessa has another child, an immortal like herself - but one who believes that humanity are beneath him, and who has no qualms over killing. And when Luthor inadvertently reawakens this creature, only one man is mighty enough to stop his killing rampage...Superman!
95 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
November 27, 2014
The story opens with Lex Luthor having a newborn child that his ex-wife wants to take away from him. From there we deal with the backstories which are the most interesting panels of this graphic novel. In many ways it is advertised as a Superman story but the main character is really Luthor and the enmity formed between himself and his ex spouse.
The artwork was also impressive enough. I liked how the backstory was in practical black and white panels even though it was more of a very light shade of tan.
Story, pencilling and painted art by Stuart Immonen. Other contributing artists were Jose Marzan, Jr, Bill Oakley an dLee Lougbridge.
ARTWORK PRESENTATION: B to B plus; STORY/PLOTTING: B minus; CHARACTERS/DIALOGUE: B; HISTORICAL BACK STORY: B to B plus; WHEN READ: end of July 2012; OVERALL GRADE: B.
The artwork was also impressive enough. I liked how the backstory was in practical black and white panels even though it was more of a very light shade of tan.
Story, pencilling and painted art by Stuart Immonen. Other contributing artists were Jose Marzan, Jr, Bill Oakley an dLee Lougbridge.
ARTWORK PRESENTATION: B to B plus; STORY/PLOTTING: B minus; CHARACTERS/DIALOGUE: B; HISTORICAL BACK STORY: B to B plus; WHEN READ: end of July 2012; OVERALL GRADE: B.
June 23, 2025
This was a different Superman story and I really enjoyed it. Originally published in early 2000, this graphic novel is set around New Years' Eve 1999 and tells the story of Lex Luthor's marriage to the immortal Contessa Erica del Portenza.
Lex and the Contessa have a daughter, Lena, who has returned in the current run of Superman comics written by Joshua Williamson, so I was curious to read something from around the time when she was originally introduced. She is a baby in this story, with the Contessa and Lex engaged in a custody battle - and because this is a super villain and an immortal, you can imagine that things get pretty intense!
The story involves immortality and occult magic. There are flashbacks revealing the Contessa's life in the 1800s, rendered in paintings by Stuart Immonen (who is also the author and penciller) which help to differentiate them from the present-day storyline. In the past, we learn that the Contessa had another child, Luca, who was used in an occult ritual meant to drain his immortality, but instead left him cruel, bloodthirsty, and seemingly sociopathic.
Meanwhile, in the present day, Erica and Lex are fighting over baby Lena. Superman and Lois are both present in the story, but interestingly are relegated to the periphery. They don't have the full picture, and the focus is much more on Lex and Erica. I really appreciate the way Immonen writes Lex - he's layered and complex, not a one-note villain at all. It's fascinating to see him as a devoted father and the lovers-to-enemies storyline with the immortal Contessa is great.
"I should think in a world that embraced a flying alien, it should be entirely likely I'd marry an immortal." (p. 40)
Superman is not the focus here, and he doesn't need to be. When he does take center stage in the explosive climax the action is terrific, and the staging - with blowing snow across the panels - looks incredible.
One kind of random note: why was Lois drawn to look so much like Dana Scully? Was it intentional? Peak 90s vibes, either way.
Lex and the Contessa have a daughter, Lena, who has returned in the current run of Superman comics written by Joshua Williamson, so I was curious to read something from around the time when she was originally introduced. She is a baby in this story, with the Contessa and Lex engaged in a custody battle - and because this is a super villain and an immortal, you can imagine that things get pretty intense!
The story involves immortality and occult magic. There are flashbacks revealing the Contessa's life in the 1800s, rendered in paintings by Stuart Immonen (who is also the author and penciller) which help to differentiate them from the present-day storyline. In the past, we learn that the Contessa had another child, Luca, who was used in an occult ritual meant to drain his immortality, but instead left him cruel, bloodthirsty, and seemingly sociopathic.
Meanwhile, in the present day, Erica and Lex are fighting over baby Lena. Superman and Lois are both present in the story, but interestingly are relegated to the periphery. They don't have the full picture, and the focus is much more on Lex and Erica. I really appreciate the way Immonen writes Lex - he's layered and complex, not a one-note villain at all. It's fascinating to see him as a devoted father and the lovers-to-enemies storyline with the immortal Contessa is great.
"I should think in a world that embraced a flying alien, it should be entirely likely I'd marry an immortal." (p. 40)
Superman is not the focus here, and he doesn't need to be. When he does take center stage in the explosive climax the action is terrific, and the staging - with blowing snow across the panels - looks incredible.
One kind of random note: why was Lois drawn to look so much like Dana Scully? Was it intentional? Peak 90s vibes, either way.
November 21, 2019
A bit of a disappointment, this one. Supes is always best when he's either matched up against someone who's smart enough to outwit the Strongest Dude Ever, or someone equally strong with whom there can be a Supertown Smashemup. Either one can be done compellingly, and this particular story confusingly tries its hand at both, succeeding at neither. Bluetights McBoyscout is unfortunately sidelined for an almost unforgivable amount of this too-short-as-it-is book, so the human players can put their machinations in place, which don't directly involve Superman at all but eventually wind up causing a sufficient enough ruckus that he needs to show up and intervene. Nobody gets enough breathing room, though, to have anything even remotely resembling any kind of actual motivation, and the result is a bunch of nonsense not worth caring about, all in service of propping up airless set-pieces that never amount to anything more than the sum of their parts (if even that).
January 22, 2021
Immonen es un enorme dibujante pero como guionista un horror. La historia es chotísima.
March 14, 2010
I wanted to like this more than I could. Immonen's art is, as always, excellent, but I couldn't get lost in the story. It seemed convoluted and none of the characters were ever fleshed out enough that I could really follow their motivations and actions with any clarity. I'll still read anything Immonen draws, but may be wary of the things he writes for now. As Superman oft says, "I hate magic."
November 2, 2024
I have a copy elsewhere, but here I found one at the library, and decided to read it again.
The ‘90s were a boom period for Superman, the so-called triangle era when he had four ongoing series chronicling his exploits, often in arcs that crossed between them, but always from a variety of creative perspectives. My favorite was Stuart Immonen’s. He’s to this day the definitive creator, for me. He started out as an artist, collaborating with Karl Kesel. Actually, he finished as an artist, too. By the end of his run DC bizarrely lost all trust in him. As writer he was given Mark Millar to cover the dialogue.
As writer and artist he was by far the most mature of them. There’s a whole issue where he dabs in Chaucer. One of my favorite Superman issues ever. And one of the best Lex Luthor stories. What Immonen took from his time with Kesel was a deep respect for the past (Kesel’s interests tended toward Kirby), and when Immonen leaned on Intergang, that was clear, but he was also keen to build the human legacy of the character, too, Superman of course, but also Luthor. No one has ever done Lex Luthor better than Stuart Immonen.
And for years, until I just reread End of the Century, I was as embittered as I always imagined Immonen himself to be upon his unceremonious departure from the DC fold, when it was decided to take Superman in bombastic new directions, to hook younger readers with less patience.
You need patience to appreciate End of the Century. You need to be interested in the character of the Contessa, Luthor’s once and future truly perfect rival, and wife, and mother of his child. In Immonen there’s a Luthor who isn’t terminally and only obsessed with Superman. He’s a Luthor who might have been featured in a J.J. Abrams TV show, Alias, or Fringe, or even Lost, none of which existed when End of the Century was first published.
Besides all that, it’s really the art, too. Immonen’s art was never better than within these pages. Outside of them his perfect DC work was in the pages of The Final Night (which Kesel wrote). Everyone always says Alex Ross and his paint does the most human superhero work. Well, Immonen does him better by remembering the small and large can exist together. As writer he can balance Superman’s smashing, his simplicity, and his humanity. It’s all there.
So to me, this story is a treasure. The Contessa story was abandoned by other creative teams. But this is a character with patience. That’s the whole point of this story. These are characters with considerable motives. But they exist, however uncomfortably, in a version of the real world often too hard to find in comics. That makes it a treasure in its own right.
The ‘90s were a boom period for Superman, the so-called triangle era when he had four ongoing series chronicling his exploits, often in arcs that crossed between them, but always from a variety of creative perspectives. My favorite was Stuart Immonen’s. He’s to this day the definitive creator, for me. He started out as an artist, collaborating with Karl Kesel. Actually, he finished as an artist, too. By the end of his run DC bizarrely lost all trust in him. As writer he was given Mark Millar to cover the dialogue.
As writer and artist he was by far the most mature of them. There’s a whole issue where he dabs in Chaucer. One of my favorite Superman issues ever. And one of the best Lex Luthor stories. What Immonen took from his time with Kesel was a deep respect for the past (Kesel’s interests tended toward Kirby), and when Immonen leaned on Intergang, that was clear, but he was also keen to build the human legacy of the character, too, Superman of course, but also Luthor. No one has ever done Lex Luthor better than Stuart Immonen.
And for years, until I just reread End of the Century, I was as embittered as I always imagined Immonen himself to be upon his unceremonious departure from the DC fold, when it was decided to take Superman in bombastic new directions, to hook younger readers with less patience.
You need patience to appreciate End of the Century. You need to be interested in the character of the Contessa, Luthor’s once and future truly perfect rival, and wife, and mother of his child. In Immonen there’s a Luthor who isn’t terminally and only obsessed with Superman. He’s a Luthor who might have been featured in a J.J. Abrams TV show, Alias, or Fringe, or even Lost, none of which existed when End of the Century was first published.
Besides all that, it’s really the art, too. Immonen’s art was never better than within these pages. Outside of them his perfect DC work was in the pages of The Final Night (which Kesel wrote). Everyone always says Alex Ross and his paint does the most human superhero work. Well, Immonen does him better by remembering the small and large can exist together. As writer he can balance Superman’s smashing, his simplicity, and his humanity. It’s all there.
So to me, this story is a treasure. The Contessa story was abandoned by other creative teams. But this is a character with patience. That’s the whole point of this story. These are characters with considerable motives. But they exist, however uncomfortably, in a version of the real world often too hard to find in comics. That makes it a treasure in its own right.
March 31, 2025
I enjoyed this one quite a bit, but it is a bit of an odd standalone graphic novel as it's tied heavily into the events of the ongoing Superman titles at the time. Still, even if nothing here blew me away, there was little not to like as Immonen clearly has a very good grasp of these characters and the plot was just twisty enough to keep things interesting.
The real star, of course, is Immonen's incredible artwork. He's a decent writer, but an absolute A+ level artist, and I've always loved the softer style that he used on Superman and that he would largely abandon for his Marvel work. The painterly flashback stuff, in particular, where he took over the art completely (industry veterans, Marzan and Loughridge handle inks and colours, respectively for the rest) presaged his jaw-droppingly beautiful work on Superman: Secret Identity with Kurt Busiek - and that book is a genuine, all-around classic.
I'm tempted to give this four-stars just based on the art alone, but the writing isn't quite good enough to deserve such a high rating. Still, I'm sure this is long out of print, but if you're a Superman/ Immonen fan and you can find it at an OK price, you won't regret checking it out.
The real star, of course, is Immonen's incredible artwork. He's a decent writer, but an absolute A+ level artist, and I've always loved the softer style that he used on Superman and that he would largely abandon for his Marvel work. The painterly flashback stuff, in particular, where he took over the art completely (industry veterans, Marzan and Loughridge handle inks and colours, respectively for the rest) presaged his jaw-droppingly beautiful work on Superman: Secret Identity with Kurt Busiek - and that book is a genuine, all-around classic.
I'm tempted to give this four-stars just based on the art alone, but the writing isn't quite good enough to deserve such a high rating. Still, I'm sure this is long out of print, but if you're a Superman/ Immonen fan and you can find it at an OK price, you won't regret checking it out.
August 8, 2020
A really solid story, even if I'm not sure I would call it a favorite. While I did really enjoy seeing a softer side of Lex Luthor (as a father) as well as some really nice moments between Lois and Clark as husband and wife (the flirting man...lol), some of the rules involving the immortality and strengths/powers of the antagonists were a little confusing. Still, the themes about humanity--particularly the violent side--were pretty strong. It was interesting how Luca ended up latching onto the murder/war chapters of the human story, even though his mother tried to show him the more positive and beautiful side. Plus, there was some pretty great action, all told alongside the dawning of a new millenium. Definitely worth checking out if your a Superman fan (or if you're a Lex Luthor fan and you want to see a different aspect of his character).
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 15, 2023
I'm not sure how well this works as a stand-alone graphic novel - the Contessa/Luthor relationship was a big part of the extended Superman line at the time, but I thought it was solid enough. Immonen's artwork is killer, as always. The script is solid enough - a slowly unfolding backstory of the Contessa's previous child running alongside a current story of Lois investigation and Superman dealing with recurring arson attacks on Lex's properties, until it all comes together. I admit, the ending was a bit of a letdown, with our heroes not really getting a chance to act meaningfully in the finale. Still, I found the Contessa an interesting character and wish more had been done with her. I'll round it up for four stars just for Immonen's art.
July 3, 2025
This comic is insane.
This is sweeping supernatural Gothic melodrama, the best way I could describe it is if the Brontes wrote 'Highlander'. Its elegant, its tragic, it's GORGEOUS.
Oh, and Superman is here too.
Its wild, because it genuinely feels like Superman and his supporting cast accidentally walked into a Gothic novel. I can see that combo being off putting to Gothic fans, superhero fans, or casual readers.
But to me? It is *pure* catnip.
This is sweeping supernatural Gothic melodrama, the best way I could describe it is if the Brontes wrote 'Highlander'. Its elegant, its tragic, it's GORGEOUS.
Oh, and Superman is here too.
Its wild, because it genuinely feels like Superman and his supporting cast accidentally walked into a Gothic novel. I can see that combo being off putting to Gothic fans, superhero fans, or casual readers.
But to me? It is *pure* catnip.
January 16, 2025
A weird book, mostly focusing on Erica Del Portenza and her 19th century Italian Masonry origins. To fully appreciate it I would probably need to read the stuff that's in between the Countess's first appearance and this volume. Still, it was okay.
May 18, 2018
So fucking boring. The art is the only thing worth anything in this bland, gimmicky junk.
July 25, 2021
2.5 stars. My expectations were a little high for this one, but it wasn’t terrible.
April 26, 2022
Kyllä osasikin olla tylsää ja hidasta kerrontaa. Jos tarina olisi kerrottu puolesta tästä sivumäärästä, tämä olisi ehkä ollut ihan jees.
Mutta kauniita kuvia.
Mutta kauniita kuvia.
April 17, 2016
Superman tackles the remnants of a previous century while preparing for a new one in this original tale from Stuart Immonen. Set in the closing days of 1999, the book opens with a doomed ship on Caribbean waters. Having left an ancient evil buried for centuries, a team of divers unearthing the wreck drags a trio of immortals into the world of Superman. One is the femme fatale known as the Contessa, who seeks to reclaim her infant child from former husband Lex Luthor. Another is the imprisoned madman Luca, whose unflinching desire to kill forced his mother to entomb him on a barren rock over a century ago. The devious Priora is the third, sole survivor of a secret society obsessed with cheating death by any means necessary. All three convene in Metropolis as the year 2000 makes its approach, dropping Superman into a battle across the ages. Stuart Immonen pens the tale, as well as adding his budding artistic style to the tome. Though he does an adequate job at drawing together his threads of past and present, it remains an unrefined and often unoriginal yarn. The better segments are those of the historical eras, demonstrating the powerhouse artist Immonen would evolve into after only a few short years. The End of the Century, like the actual turn of the clock, turns out to be more pomp than circumstance.
August 6, 2012
The art and storytelling are pretty good but I find the story itself somewhat lacking.
This is a Superman book but the story is dominated by Lex Luthor's immortal wife and her sadistic immortal son who seem to belong to a completely different world. Superman, Louis Lane and even Lex's roles are so diminished and so far removed from the central plot, it really shouldn't be a Superman book.
This is a Superman book but the story is dominated by Lex Luthor's immortal wife and her sadistic immortal son who seem to belong to a completely different world. Superman, Louis Lane and even Lex's roles are so diminished and so far removed from the central plot, it really shouldn't be a Superman book.
June 29, 2015
Rats. I picked this up from the library thinking it was an Elseworlds title.
It was somewhat interesting, if a bit involved. Maybe I would have been more into it if I had known why Luthor had a baby. When did this happen? The turn of the century idea - going back and forth between 1900 and 2000 was creative, but didn't ultimately deliver.
It was somewhat interesting, if a bit involved. Maybe I would have been more into it if I had known why Luthor had a baby. When did this happen? The turn of the century idea - going back and forth between 1900 and 2000 was creative, but didn't ultimately deliver.
January 24, 2013
An enjoyable Superman/Lex story in which they're borderline friendly with each other. As the millenium approaches, Lex is uncovering strange things on an archaeological dig, which will have ramefications for everyone involved.
April 29, 2012
This book pretty much limps through all the untied story lines from the previous 15 years and tries to tie them up in pretty little bows to limited success.
February 29, 2012
Fun, short graphic novel about what Superman's life might have been like had he come to earth 38 years earlier. Probably for fans only, but fans will probably like it.
May 7, 2015
Interesting look into one of Lex's wives, particularly with the approach of the new millenium. Still it doesn't generate too much. In some places it was mostly very slow for me.
C+
C+
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